(Footballville) "Make A Play" 15u 7v7 Tourney Top Standouts

Ives Estate Park, Fl- 7v7 15u football is trending upward in the Southeast region, with so many more opportunities for prospects to showcase their talents to College recruiters. If you aren’t familiar with 15u let me give you a quick breakdown on 15u. Like High schools have a Varsity & Jv you could say in 7v7 terms 15u is Junior Varsity so to speak. With only a limited roster on Varsity it made more sense to start 15u to give Freshman and rising 8th graders a chance to compete and transition to the speed of the game on the High school level. In steps Footballville who introduced his very 1st all 15u tournament Make A Play which featured some of the best 15u’s in the state of Florida. South Florida’s very own Team Nightmare would capture the every 1st Make A Play Tournament Championship with a 7-0 record. Team Nightmare happens to be gelling at the right time because they were coming off an impressive showing at the IMG (Southeast Regional Tourney) even though they fail short, which wouldn’t be the case this week. Winning "Make A Play" wasn’t an easy task when you consider team Nightmare would have to defeat IMG Regional Champs South Florida Express twice in two tightly contestant games. Then you throw in beating Sf Air Raid & Fire Dade, and team Nightmare would earn this championship the hard way. So, with no further due I’m going to get to the meat & potatoes and breakdown the Tournaments Top Standouts.

“Make A Play”15u Tourney’s Top Standouts

Name : Pete Zamora

Position : Quarterback

Team : SF Air Raid

Class : 2022

The Skinny:

Pete Zamora was considered one of South Florida’s underrated 8th grade Quarterback prospects following his 2017 season. If you follow 15u tournaments Pete has picked up some steam and is playing some of the best football so far. Sunday was no different Pete lead his team to one of the top seeds while picking apart defenses putting up 3 touchdowns or better in each game. You can tell Pete’s Sf Air Raid team has got their chemistry together the way the offense was flowing, with Pete throwing touchdowns on his 2nd and 3rd reads this team is going to be hard to beat down the road.

Name: Jaden Williams

Position : Quarterback

Team : Nightmare

Class: 2021

High School: Miami Northwestern

The Skinny:

Williams has natural arm strength. The ball just zips out of his hand. He throws a tight football and can often get away with not having ideal mechanics to help his velocity because he can still sling it like so many other quarterbacks can’t. On Sunday things came full circle for Williams as he put on a passing clinic throwing over 19 touchdown passes which resulted in him taking home MVP honors. There were times when his team would have their back against the wall and Williams would make a throw that would leave you in awe. Tournament Champs & MVP honors it’s safe to say Williams stood in the paint for his hardware and his team seems to be in a zone and peaking at the right time.

Name : Nick Vattiato

Position : Quarterback

Team : South Florida Express

Class : 2021

School : University School

The Skinny:

When you have a career thus far like Nick Vattiato from Youth Football to a Freshman playing varsity ball on Friday nights under the lights doing numbers. Then you can expect to get everyone’s A game . But no stranger to the bright lights and pressure situations Nick just goes about his business and raises his level of play to secure the victories. As I focused my camera on Nick I begin to notice, Wow! this kid is in a groove that quick release and the way the ball pops off his hand was a thing of beauty. Nick was a surgeon at work slicing thru defenses like a hot knife thru butter. Nick’s team would fall short on the day but this kid still managed to come up big.

Name : Yulkeith Brown

Position: Running-back

Team : Nightmare

Class : 2021

School : Miami Northwestern

The Skinny :

Some people call it cocky some call it swag, but I call it self confidence and believing in your ability. Yulkeith Brown is cocky and has no problem telling any competitor he is that dude. Yul favorite quote is “4# go score!” You can say what you like but this kid bite is far more dangerous than his bark. Yul is extremely talented and a threat in the passing game with his smooth route running which is a result of his high football IQ. You have to account for Yul on every play he knows how to set defenders up to gain separation you can pretty much kiss the baby if he gets the ball in the open field. In my humble opinion Yul was Co-MVP his presence alone on offense or defense help lead Nightmare to the Make A Play Championship.

Name : Marvin Sims

Position : Defensive-back

Team : Strong Arm

Class : 2022

The Skinny :

Marvin is a fluid athlete with good speed. He isn’t a burner but runs really well and has good change of direction skills. Marvin is surprisingly advanced at playing press man coverage. He can be physical at the line and has nice mirroring skills. He adjusts well to double moves and has the speed to recover if he loses a step. He was left on an island one on one in 7v7 tourneys against some of the top players in his class and really shined. Marvin played lights out Sunday not giving up one catch on his side of the field call it Marvin’s Island.

Name: Elijah Vaughn

Position : Defensive-back

Team: Nightmare

Class: 2021

School: Miami Central Sr. High

The Skinny:

Elijah Vaughn best attribute as a DB is his instincts. He sees routes or a quarterback about to throw and breaks off his responsibility to step out of nowhere to either make a pbu or a play on the football. His ball skills are very good as well, which is also evident with him blanketing receivers. He will get up to high point the football if your thinking about throwing a fade on him. Elijah is every confident in his ability he is skilled in mental warfare because he will talk and get in his opponent’s head and take him out the game. If I had to best describe this kid, I’d say the ultimate competitor because he is always shadowing your 1# receiver looking to lock him down.

Name: Brandon Innis Jr.

Position: Wide Receiver

Team: SF Express

Class: 2023

The Skinny:

Brandon is a smooth athlete with blistering speed. He just chews up ground effortlessly. He can get to full speed quickly and has great feet. Brandon has the speed to threaten over the top, but it’s the way he switches gear to create separation that really stands out. He does a nice job of tracking the deep ball and can go up and get it. He is smooth out of his breaks and knows how to use his speed to get a corner turned and then break back to the football. He can become a better route runner, but he really has great tools that make me think he can be an exceptional one. We often say age ain’t nothing but a number but in football age means a lot, which makes what Innis is doing that much more impressive being almost 2 years younger than his competition. Brandon made his case Sunday why he should be considered the Number 1# ranked prospect in the class of 2023.

Name: A’mahri McCray

Position: Linebacker

Team: Strong Arm

Class: 2021

School: North Miami Sr. High

The Skinny:

In the vast majority of instances when it comes to 7v7 a lot of Linebackers stay clear of playing. But not A’mahri “Hound” McCray a freshman All County selection welcomed the challenge with open arms. Hound was the emotional leader for his Strong Arm team, when he lacked the foot speed to keep up with receivers this kid leaned on his top-notch instincts. One play that will standout to me is when Hound seem to be beat on a seem route, instead of panicking he did what football players do which is play the receiver and make a play. When you have a middle linebacker shining in 7v7 you have yourself a complete linebacker that can play 3 downs and that’s Hound.

Name: Fred Eaford

Position: Wide Receiver

Team: SF Air Raid

Class: 2021

School:

The Skinny:

If I had to pick the most dominate receiver on the 15u thus far it would most likely be Fred Eaford. Fred is one of those players that just keeps getting better every time I see him. What makes Fred so dangerous is guys game plan for him and knows he is Sf Air Raid go to guy and guess what they still can’t stop this touchdown machine. Fred is one of the best athletes at the position in this entire class. He eats up so much ground with his strides and has deceptively explosive speed. He has that extra gear that, so few have. Even when given a huge cushion to work against, Eaford has the speed to get deep on a cornerback. He gets on top of players so quickly with his long strides and forces them to open up. He changes speed very well too and it allows him to gain that extra bit of separation when running deep. All in all, this kid has a bright future ahead of him.

Name: Steve Augustine

Position: Wide Receiver

Team: Strong Arm

Class: 2021

School: Miami Northwestern Sr. High

The Skinny:

Steve is an easy athlete. He’s got some burst, but is smooth and fluid in his movement. He has good top end speed. He is a little slim right now but has the frame to add more weight. Steve shows natural hands and snatches the football away from his body. He can run almost the full route tree, but has the footwork to become an outstanding route runner. He has a big catch radius and great ball skills that helped him come down with some big catches Sunday Steve made a beautiful over the shoulder touchdown catch down the seam where he beat two defenders. He is a good player after the catch because of his lateral agility and ability to make people miss. He can take it to another gear to gain big chunk yardage. Augustine was Strong Arm go to receiver Sunday and made plays every time his number was called.

Name: Tavares Blackmon

Position: Quarterback

Team: Fire (Dade)

Class: 2021

School: Barbara Goleman Sr. High

The Skinny:

You can measure a prospect by his size but you can’t measure or teach heart. Tavares is a 2-time Pop Warner National Champion and some will let the size fool them which happens to be the biggest mistakes judging this kid. He will find the check down and can get the defense running out of position to find his best option. Tavares has really good touch, especially when he throws the fade. He throws a catchable ball, and shows the velocity to make all of the throws effectively right now. He zipped quite a few out routes and throws up the seam that were on the money. Quite sure a lot of teams underestimated Blackmon because of size but he left his mark Sunday showing he can compete with the best of them.

Name: Troy Stellato

Position: Wide Receiver

Team: SF Air Raid

Class: 2021

School: Cardinal Gibbons

The Skinny:

Troy Stellato has outstanding size and is a true mismatch against any corner. He has good speed for how big he is as well, but he also is jumping out the gym and has a knack for high pointing balls. Troy is a natural hands catcher that does a nice job of snatching the football away from his body. This is one thing that helps him be such a good player after the catch. He also does an outstanding job of adjusting to the football when it’s in the air and can come down with difficult catches. He judges the ball really well over his shoulder. He is a above the rim player, and may be a above the rim athlete, but does a nice job of using his body to box out and gain position to win 50/50 footballs. QB Pete Zamora was running out of time and manage to find Troy for a beautiful catch where Troy was able to get one foot in showing off his tap dancing skills. Troy’s emergence makes Sf Air Raid a serious contender to anybody willing to line it up.

Name: Jhared Jouse

Position: Defensive-back

Team: Fire (Dade)

Class:2021

School: Pines Charter

The Skinny:

Coming into this weekend fairly as an unknown Jhared Jouse made a emphatic statement that he has arrived. Fiesty & competitive was the things that stuck out the most about Jhared he challenged everything even uncatchable balls. Jhared Jouse has a lot of dog in him as a football player. This kid can ball against anyone at any size. He is smooth in his backpedal and very technically sound for a player at this stage in his development. Very physical with his hands at the line of scrimmage, but knows how to get his body on a receiver without grabbing down the field. He can play press or off coverage. He isn’t just an athlete that can match up in play man either. He displays good instincts and awareness in zone as well. I’d have to say I look forward to seeing more of this young man, because he plays with a chip on his shoulder which is what jumps out at you.

Name: Malik Rutherford

Position: Wide Receiver

Team: SF Express

Class: 2021

School: Champagnat Catholic

The Skinny:

Malik is the definition of swag from how he dresses to how he plays on the field, to even how he talks before he makes a fool out of a defender. Malik’s’ quickness leaps out at you when you watch him. He has that extra burst that makes him a dangerous player out of his breaks when running routes and also after the catch. He runs more physical than his size would suggest, but it’s his ability to stop and start and make defenders miss that make him so good. He can maximize yardage after he gets his hands on the football. He has the top end speed to get deep and shows he can beat press man off the line with great lateral agility. With his full repertoire on display Sunday at times it seemed Malik was toying with opponents yes folks he is just that good.

Name: Claude Larkin

Position: Tight End

Team: Fire (Dade)

Class: 2021

School: South Broward Sr. High

The Skinny:

You can teach a lot of things, but you can’t teach size and Claude Larkins has size 6’3” 200 plus pounds. Even though I feel Larkin future maybe at Defensive End, what he did this weekend as a tight end let’s me know whatever position he ends up playing he will be a problem. His catch radius is impressive. He can flat out go up and get the football and is tremendous at catching bad balls that should be incompletions and hauling them in. He has great hands and always snatching the football away from his body. Even when there is contact, it doesn’t faze him and he is able to bring down the football the majority of the time. He uses his body really well to shield defenders and will also just go up over top of them to grab the football. Larkins was pretty much his teams go to receiver in the middle of the field and no one stopped him pretty much all day. Don’t know what position he will end up playing but he definitely has a high ceiling as a tight end.

Name: Torrie Cox Jr.

Position: Defensive-back

Team: SF Express

Class: 2021

School: Miramar Sr. High

The Skinny:

I would love to say like father like son, but Torrie Cox Jr. Has a leg up on his Dad. Torrie has the luxury of learning from his Dad who was a College star and NFL veteran. You won’t find to many kids his age with a higher football IQ which allows him to play the game faster mentally & physically. If you don’t have heart don’t line up in front of Cox because he is physical and will take your heart. This weekend was another walk in the park for this young man. His mirroring skills is very impressive for his age and he can run with just about anyone. Even if he loses a step when matched up with a receiver, he has the ability to recover quickly. He shows the ability to play both press and off-man. He is smooth and balanced in his backpedal. There is little wasted motion with him and he can stick his foot in the ground and explode to the football. He uses his length well to get his hands on passes and shows great awareness for turning his head at the appropriate time without losing his man. He opens his hips and transitions extremely smooth. He doesn’t lose speed when he has to open up. His eye discipline was excellent and his ability to break on the football stood out. When your Dad is a Coach & former NFL player it’s only right he stays ahead of the curve when it comes to perfecting his craft.